Off the Wire

BASEBALL

Rendon on IL

Third baseman Anthony Rendon has been placed on the Los Angeles Angels' injured list for the third time before the All-Star break. Rendon went on the 10-day injured list Tuesday with a left hamstring strain that occurred Sunday. The Angels recalled infielder Jack Mayfield from Class AAA Salt Lake to replace him. Rendon has struggled with injuries and inconsistent production at the plate throughout the second season of a $245 million, seven-year contract he signed as a free agent to join Los Angeles after winning the World Series in a career year with Washington in 2019. The slugger has played in just 58 of the Angels' 84 games, and he is batting a career-low .240 with 6 home runs -- just three since May 3 -- and 34 RBI. He was 11 for 47 with 2 home runs in his final 13 games before his latest injury. Rendon missed 11 games in April with a groin strain. He then missed nine games in May with a bruise after fouling a ball off his left knee. Rendon will be eligible to return after the Angels come back from the All-Star break next week.

Brewers acquire Tellez

The National League Central-leading Milwaukee Brewers added a power-hitting first baseman, acquiring left-handed hitting Rowdy Tellez from the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday for right-handed pitchers Trevor Richards and Bowden Francis. Tellez, 26, had been with the Blue Jays' Class AAA Buffalo affiliate after struggling in the majors this season with a .209 batting average, 4 home runs and 8 RBI in 50 games. He hit 21 homers for Toronto in 2019 and had an .886 OPS in 35 games last season. Tellez was expected to be in uniform for today's series finale against the New York Mets. The Brewers needed some help at first base. Daniel Vogelbach on the injured list due to a strained left hamstring and isn't expected to return until August. Keston Hiura, who opened the season as the Brewers' starting first baseman, is batting .161 and already has been sent to the minors twice this season. Hiura showed signs of progress during the Brewers' recent 11-game winning streak, but he has gone 0 for 7 with six strikeouts over his last two games. Richards, 28, is changing teams for the second time this season. The Brewers acquired him along with shortstop Willy Adames in a May 21 trade that sent relievers J.P. Feyereisen and Drew Rasmussen to the Tampa Bay Rays. Francis, 25, is 7-3 with a 3.62 ERA in 11 starts at Class AA Biloxi and Class AAA Nashville this season.

Hallion ASG plate umpire

Tom Hallion will be the plate umpire and crew chief for the All-Star Game at Denver's Coors Field on July 13. Hallion, a 28-year major league veteran, was left field umpire for the 1992 All-Star Game in San Diego and second base umpire for the 2008 game at Yankee Stadium. He will be joined by CB Bucknor (first base), Chris Guccione (second base), Lance Barrett (third base), David Rackley (left field) and Adam Hamari (right field).B ucknor worked left field at the 2005 game in Detroit, and Guccione worked right field in the 2011 game at Arizona. Barrett, Rackley and Hamari will each work their first All-Star Game. Greg Gibson will be the replay umpire in New York. Colorado-based Dave Einspahr will be the official scorer.

FOOTBALL

Patriots sign QB Jones

The New England Patriots on Tuesday signed quarterback Mac Jones, their first-round draft pick and the latest potential long-term replacement for Tom Brady. The No. 15 overall selection, Jones led Alabama to the 2020 national championship. Last year, he led all Division I quarterbacks with 4,500 passing yards and set the NCAA record by completing 77.4% of his passes. The Patriots attempted to groom several players as their next quarterback, including Matt Cassel, Jimmy Garoppolo and Jacoby Brissett, but Brady outlasted them all while leading the Patriots to six Super Bowls. After Brady left for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers last season -- and led them to the NFL title -- Cam Newton was signed as a free agent, with 2019 fourth-round draft pick Jarrett Stidham unable to pry the starting job away from the longtime Carolina Panthers starter.

Former Rice RB dies

Dicky Maegle, the Rice running back tackled in the 1954 Cotton Bowl by an Alabama player who came off the bench in one of the most legendary plays in college football history, has died. Rice University and the National Football Foundation said Tuesday that Maegle passed away Sunday. He was 86. After leaving Rice, and playing with three teams over seven NFL seasons, he changed the spelling of his last name to the phonetically correct Maegle instead of Moegle. In Rice's 28-6 win on New Year's Day 1954, Maegle took a handoff from the Owls 5 and went around the right end. After getting past Bart Starr, a defensive back and quarterback for the Tide, and the rest of the Alabama defenders, Maegle was near midfield when Tommy Lewis came off the bench and threw a blindside block that knocked him to the ground. Lewis then ran back to the bench, and officials awarded Maegle a 95-yard touchdown run. Maegle also had TD runs of 79 and 34 yards to finish with 265 yards rushing on 11 carries in that Cotton Bowl. That is still a single-game Rice record for rushing yards. A two-way player in college, Maegle was the 10th overall pick by San Francisco in the 1955 NFL draft and made the Pro Bowl as a rookie defensive back. He had 28 interceptions in 73 career games, with the 49ers (1955-59), Pittsburgh Steelers (1960) and Dallas Cowboys (1961).

MOTOR SPORTS

Elliott in SRX finale

The Superstar Racing Experience has been a hit in it's first season, and it just added NASCAR's most popular driver to its lineup. The series announced Tuesday that defending Cup champion Chase Elliott will race in the July 17 season finale at the Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway, joining father Bill Elliott, who is a series regular. Elliott won his first Cup title last fall while Bill won the 1988 Cup championship. They are just the third father-son combo to win Cup Series championships, joining the Pettys (Lee won three and Richard won seven) and Jarretts (Ned won two while Dale won in 1999). The Elliotts also raced together in the Alabama Pro 125 Late Model race at South Alabama in 2013. Chase won while Bill finished fourth. Both drivers also have experience at Nashville, with Chase competing in several Super Late Model events and Bill racing in seven Cup races.

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